There are many methods for hanging and/or displaying a flag currently known. The classic flag pole relies on a generally vertical pole fixed to the ground or other location with a flag attached to a rope apparatus that can be used to raise the flag from the ground to the top of the pole. Generally speaking, flags are rectangular in shape, having two short sides and two long sides defining the perimeter of the flag. Usually, one of the short sides is attached to the rope apparatus. Thus, when the wind blows, it causes the flag to extend outwards, such that the long sides of the flag extend parallel to the ground. The flag is then displayed for all to see. However, when the wind is not blowing, a standard flag display apparatus allows the flag to hang limply from the rope apparatus. Most of the flag is then folded over itself, causing the entire field of the flag not to be viewable.
Flags are basically two dimensional in appearance, comprising a sheet of fabric or other material(s) having a front face and a rear face, both faces surrounded by a rectangular perimeter having two opposite and parallel short sides and two opposite and parallel long sides. The faces display the field of the flag; usually the same field is displayed on both faces of the flag. The field can depict a design, a motto, an emblem, a picture, a phrase, one or more colors, combinations of the aforementioned items, etc. For example, the United States flag has a blue rectangle covered in 50 white stars in the upper left of the field and the remainder of the field has alternating red and white stripes. When a US flag is displayed from a standard flag pole and the wind is not blowing, the configuration of the items displayed in the field can be difficult to discern.
In order to overcome this deficiency in standard flag display devices, other types of devices have begun to grow in popularity. One class of devices holds rectangular flags in a rigid manner so that they extend out from a flagpole or other structure regardless of whether a wind is blowing or not. However, such devices give the flag a stiff, unappealing appearance and are not favored. Instead, many persons display flags in a vertical orientation where the long sides of the flag hang downwards and are perpendicular to the ground. Vertical flag display devices that can display a flag in this manner are varied; but generally, they have a spar or horizontal member which holds one of the short ends of the flag and allows the flag to hang vertically. A problem inherent in most such vertical display devices lies in the attachment of the flag to the spar. Nails, tacks, etc. are often employed which can damage the flag, especially with repeated use.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,402,116 to Northup attempts to overcome the above mentioned deficiency by employing a flag having a channel through which the spar (or dowel) is slid. The flag and spar are then inserted into a sleeve having a slit through which the flag can extend downwards. The sleeve has a threaded opening in its sidewall that accepts a threaded support pole. When the pole is screwed into the opening it places pressure on the flag and dowel, securing the flag to the dowel without puncturing the flag. However, this arrangement has a number of deficiencies itself. First, the end of the support pole that is pushing against the flag wears on the flag each time it is affixed to the sleeve, causing a wear spot to develop on the flag. Such a spot can eventually become a hole in the flag—exactly the problem that the Northup device was designed to avoid. Furthermore, in heavy winds, the dowel, flag and sleeve can be rotated by the wind relative to the support pole, causing the device to separate and the flag to be lost as the support pole no longer puts pressure on the flag. Finally, the Northup device also has no provision for securing the corners of the flag on the ends of the dowel such that a high wind can cause the loose corners to be pushed towards the support pole and the flag then ‘bunches-up’ making it difficult for an observer to see the entire field.
What is needed is a flag display apparatus that can hold a flag in a vertical orientation without damaging the flag and without the possibility of losing the flag in high winds.